One World and 30 Days
One thing enjoyable about moving is exploring a new place. This move has been a bit different since I have intermittently lived in Maryland. It feels a bit like going in a time-machine from high-school skipping internationally every few years moving to Alaska then Italy and always coming back to Maryland. I remember when we first moved "out east" from Washington state when I was 15 and I swore to never ever live on the east coast a day past my 18th birthday. Never say never, right?
Last week was curiously interesting. I enjoyed a good break from unpacking and decorating to putting on a cute outfit and going north to Baltimore and meet with a dear friend at my favorite little restaurant One World Cafe.
I took the familiar roads and didn't need my GPS once I hit Charles Street. Everything felt so familiar as if nothing changed. There was the same good bus stop where I enjoyed coffee, the Peabody Conservatory of Music which has a heartbreakingly beautiful library.
I reached North Ave and finally got to Johns Hopkins territory. Hopkins students look the same, the beach (a lawn of grass) was cluttered with students napping in the historically known napping lawn.
Everything felt the same. It was such a strange sensation seeing my old apartment building and parking in my old parking spot where so many times I got parking tickets between 2:30 PM and 6 PM when there was a 2 hour parking rule in effect.
I loved the golden fall trees bending down as to say "welcome back home". These were the same trees that sent me off to Italy years ago around this time.
I loved eating at One World Café where nothing has changed. The menu still healthy, the cake's still tall, and the bathroom still has the fastest flushing toilet that startles you.
All of these good things about coming back to Maryland made leaving Jersey easier. I was talking it over with my mom who commented that joy for her is really a choice to find the good little things in life when things are tough. She told me how choosing joy is hard when it is easier to succumb to the realities of bad health, stressful environments, and the unfortunate prevalence of crappy miserable people (sadly, usually women) who assume the worst in others to feel better about themselves.
After talking to her I read an article which was cheesy but inspired me to celebrate this moment in life by participating in the 30 Days of Thankfulness. Are you ready for this? Don't set your expectations too high. Here we go:
1. Bentley and Fatty having good recent stools. Like old people, old cats need good poops. With the recent move I was expecting my old cats to get constipated, sick and need the vet. Thankful for healthy kitty bums!
2. Sweet Southern people in Maryland. Since being here I have had doors opened by gentlemen and women! I have had helping hands (nice old geezers too) help us move furniture. And all the neighbors on the street have introduced themselves with lengthy chats about where to get the best produce and which route to take to DC etc.
3. Raking the leaves. I haven't raked leaves since I was about 12. Last week our maple tree shed her red leaves and I enjoyed a few hours of raking the fluttery leaves into piles, creating a composting bin and smelling the sweet mist coming up from the leaves.
4. Flip flops. In Italy flip flops were not considered shoes, nor were my beloved Birks. In Jersey it is too dusty and dirty to wear flip flops in the street. But out here in the DC suburbs / country it is perfect to wear flip flops!
5. Being a housewife again. Dare I say it? Betty Crocker has nothing on me! I really enjoy cleaning, as you can see in my Italian post here. And I have taken up my old routine of singing, dancing and cleaning while there is a slow cooked meal simmering for hours on the stove.
6. On the note of singing and dancing. I'm thankful for my singing/dancing current favorite song:
7. My old stuff. This house is starting to feel like a home piece by piece as we set up our old stuff, dust it off and put it in a place that makes sense.
8. Really cool fabric. We just got a green velvet tufted sofa that I am in love with (as are the cats). And all of this decorating has me going through fabrics I already have to remake them into curtains, couch pillows, etc.
Last week was curiously interesting. I enjoyed a good break from unpacking and decorating to putting on a cute outfit and going north to Baltimore and meet with a dear friend at my favorite little restaurant One World Cafe.
I took the familiar roads and didn't need my GPS once I hit Charles Street. Everything felt so familiar as if nothing changed. There was the same good bus stop where I enjoyed coffee, the Peabody Conservatory of Music which has a heartbreakingly beautiful library.
I reached North Ave and finally got to Johns Hopkins territory. Hopkins students look the same, the beach (a lawn of grass) was cluttered with students napping in the historically known napping lawn.
Everything felt the same. It was such a strange sensation seeing my old apartment building and parking in my old parking spot where so many times I got parking tickets between 2:30 PM and 6 PM when there was a 2 hour parking rule in effect.
I loved the golden fall trees bending down as to say "welcome back home". These were the same trees that sent me off to Italy years ago around this time.
I loved eating at One World Café where nothing has changed. The menu still healthy, the cake's still tall, and the bathroom still has the fastest flushing toilet that startles you.
All of these good things about coming back to Maryland made leaving Jersey easier. I was talking it over with my mom who commented that joy for her is really a choice to find the good little things in life when things are tough. She told me how choosing joy is hard when it is easier to succumb to the realities of bad health, stressful environments, and the unfortunate prevalence of crappy miserable people (sadly, usually women) who assume the worst in others to feel better about themselves.
After talking to her I read an article which was cheesy but inspired me to celebrate this moment in life by participating in the 30 Days of Thankfulness. Are you ready for this? Don't set your expectations too high. Here we go:
Thirty Days of Thankfulness
I'm thankful for:1. Bentley and Fatty having good recent stools. Like old people, old cats need good poops. With the recent move I was expecting my old cats to get constipated, sick and need the vet. Thankful for healthy kitty bums!
2. Sweet Southern people in Maryland. Since being here I have had doors opened by gentlemen and women! I have had helping hands (nice old geezers too) help us move furniture. And all the neighbors on the street have introduced themselves with lengthy chats about where to get the best produce and which route to take to DC etc.
3. Raking the leaves. I haven't raked leaves since I was about 12. Last week our maple tree shed her red leaves and I enjoyed a few hours of raking the fluttery leaves into piles, creating a composting bin and smelling the sweet mist coming up from the leaves.
4. Flip flops. In Italy flip flops were not considered shoes, nor were my beloved Birks. In Jersey it is too dusty and dirty to wear flip flops in the street. But out here in the DC suburbs / country it is perfect to wear flip flops!
5. Being a housewife again. Dare I say it? Betty Crocker has nothing on me! I really enjoy cleaning, as you can see in my Italian post here. And I have taken up my old routine of singing, dancing and cleaning while there is a slow cooked meal simmering for hours on the stove.
6. On the note of singing and dancing. I'm thankful for my singing/dancing current favorite song:
7. My old stuff. This house is starting to feel like a home piece by piece as we set up our old stuff, dust it off and put it in a place that makes sense.
8. Really cool fabric. We just got a green velvet tufted sofa that I am in love with (as are the cats). And all of this decorating has me going through fabrics I already have to remake them into curtains, couch pillows, etc.
Comments
Post a Comment